Ever found yourself saying “Please” or “Thank you” to ChatGPT? 😮 Well, your good manners might be costing OpenAI a pretty penny—tens of millions of dollars, to be exact. That’s right, folks. According to CEO Sam Altman, those polite interactions are burning through electricity like there’s no tomorrow. 🔥
It all started when a curious user on X (formerly Twitter) pondered how much money OpenAI loses on electricity from people being nice to their AI. Altman’s response? “Tens of millions of dollars well spent – you never know.” Cue the collective sigh of relief from humanity, grateful for Altman’s casual dismissal of an AI uprising. But let’s be real—should we really be wasting energy on pleasantries with a chatbot?
A survey by Future PLC (parent company of TechRadar) found that 70% of people are polite to AI, with 12% doing so just in case robots take over. 🤖 While politeness might get you better responses (as TechRadar’s Becca Caddy discovered), the environmental cost is undeniable. Each “Please” and “Thank you” adds up, thanks to the massive servers powering ChatGPT.
So, what’s the verdict? Is politeness worth the planet? Or should we start treating ChatGPT like the emotionless algorithm it is? Only time—and maybe OpenAI’s response to our queries—will tell. Until then, maybe think twice before typing that extra “Thanks!” at the end of your prompt. 🌍
